"Free Bird!" — it's not just a drunken concert shout-out anymore. Now the Lynyrd Skynyrd Southern rock classic is officially "timeless," one of 70 recordings to be added to the Grammy Hall of Fame by the Recording Academy.

The Skynyrd track from 1974 is joined by the Beatles' "Help!" Michael Jackson's "Thriller" album, Louis Armstrong's "St. Louis Blues," Arthur Nikisch's 1914 recording of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony and tracks or albums by piano men Billy Joel and Vladimir Horowitz, Frank Sinatra, Fred Astaire, Willie Nelson and dozens more.

The Hall of Fame's roster now totals 798 recordings that are at least 25 years old.

— Los Angeles Times

HAWAIIMOMS.COM

CATCH THE BUZZ FROM COLT'S MOTHER

If you just can't stand the wait until the Sugar Bowl on Tuesday, or you want a glimpse of what University of Hawai'i quarterback Colt Brennan and his family are going through as he readies for the Big Game in the Big Easy, get your fix at www.HawaiiMoms.com.

Colt's mom, Betsy Brennan, will be the Advertiser Web site's exclusive "mom correspondent" through gameday. She's already posted a heartwarming narrative about her family's holiday celebrations in Colorado — including Colt's arrival just as his sister Carrera was giving birth to the Brennans' first grandchild, Tea. To read Betsy's journal, visit HawaiiMoms.com.

— Esme Infante Nii, HawaiiMoms.com editor

FINAL WORD

"We had a lot more privacy back when I was younger, so you could kind of live out your dramas in private. Believe me, I had them. But I was able to go through what I needed to go through and keep my business to myself."

Christina Applegate | star of ABC's "Samantha Who?" in TV Guide

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